Story

1963 - 1980
Dominic was born in 1963, the youngest of 4 brothers. His parents were a friendly couple called Steve and Lydia London. He had a wonderful childhood surrounded by his family, and had many fond memories of playing/causing unfathomable trouble with his siblings, Dave, Martin, and Adam.
He'd always had an interest in music from an early age, 'singing' along to the chart hits before he could even talk. It was in high school that he met Joel Karson, his closest bro for a decent portion of his life. The two of them both loved guitar, and would practice in Joels bedroom for hours, until his parents were sick of it and would tell the boys to 'go out and busk or something'!

The tale of musical fame was a tantalising one for the two teenagers, and they began to take their hobby more seriously. Eventually, Frankie, Cliff Jacobs, and Nkosana joined their little group. Frankie was their vocalist, a charismatic but petty, self-involved man. Cliff, a quieter gent, played bass guitar, and Nkosana, equally reserved but far more motivated, drummed. Joel and Dominic played guitar together. They started playing at bars in the area, and named their band 'Starstruck Ape'.
Meanwhile, Dominics relationship with Cliff developed in a surprising way, confirming for Dominic once and for all the fact that he experienced attraction to men. Their relationship was extremely secret. Both of them - but especially Cliff, were terrified of the taboo they were performing. After nearly a year of seeing each other, Dominic was desperate to become open, but Cliff refused. He knew how vehemently his parents would disapprove, and didn't want to lose them from his life.
Tearfully, Cliff broke it off. Neither of them wanted to, but they couldn't continue holding such a secret. Dominic was heartbroken.

1981 - 2000

Meanwhile, their band had grown quite popular, but other cracks were starting to appear. There were tensions between certain members of the band, but it all blew up when Nkosana caught Frankie with his girlfriend.
After that, the band decided it best to go their separate ways.
Dominic set up a music store down the high street, to moderate success. He also met a woman called Nadine Bell, through Frankie. They began seeing each other, but after only 6 months, Nadine found herself pregnant.
Dominic and Nadine panicked, but Nadine was determined to keep the baby. Very quickly, it would seem as though Dominics future was certain. He proposed to Nadine. Neither wanted a baby out of wedlock, but the marriage itself was put on the backburner.
It soon became obvious that their relationship wasn't going to work out, but they were determined to try for the sake of Clara London, who was born in 1987. It just wasn't going to happen, however, and Clara was only 3 when Dominic and Nadine split for good.
Clara went to live with her mother.

Dominic's life felt a bit upside down, with his now-failing business, failed relationship, and daughter than he didn't see anywhere near as much as he'd like. He found life hard, but he appreciated the help from his parents, who were always there for him and Clara. All the same, Dominic, at times, felt unable to go on - he felt that something in his life needed to change.

In 1991, an old friend of Dominics got back in touch. Travis was a close friend of the band back in the day, who used to help with the non-musical side of things. Travis had a proposal for Dominic. Travis' brother was a member of an embassy in India. He was constantly asking him to stay there, so they could catch up, and so Travis could experience the country for himself, too. Travis wasn't that interested, but he did want to see his brother. However, he didn't want to go there on his own - so he asked Dominic.
Dominic's instinctive answer was no - there's too much going on at home, for god's sake. But the more he thought about it, the more appealing the idea seemed.
Dominic's parents encouraged him. They told Dominic that getting to see the world was an incredible opportunity, and just what he needed after the whirlwind of the past few years.

And so, Dominic travelled to India with Travis.
Dominic had never experienced anything quite like what he experienced when he was there. Travis preferred to lounge in the blistering sun all day, but Dominic found that his eyes had been opened by the culture and by the jarring contrast between this and his own life. He enjoyed conversing with locals, educating himself. It was a somehow reassuring feeling to know that there was a whole other world out there, separate to his own hectic life.
Through a string of coincidences, he met a woman named Indira Safaya. He was smitten and thought she was the most beautiful woman he'd ever met, and tried to converse with her multiple times. Indira seemed mostly dismissive of Dominics thinly veiled advances, so he decided to leave her alone. However, he found that Indira began to approach him in turn, starting to take an interest in him and his life. Before they knew it, they were on an outing that could even be considered a date. Dominic was obsessed with Indira, bringing her flowers and taking a genuine interest in everything she had to say. Indira was studying english, and while it wasn't perfect, it was certainly better than Dominics marathi, and the two of them could have meaningful conversations. Dominic didn't want to leave, and Indira didn't want him to, either. He ended up staying four months - far longer than the two weeks that were planned.

It wasn't long after he came back home that Nadine informed him that she was moving back up to Scotland, to look after her ill, disabled mother. Clara was kicking up a fuss about this as she didn't want to go, and Nadine didn't think it was the best environment to raise her, anyway. Soon after, Clara moved in with Dominic.

Dominic was still thinking about Indira, and sent her letters constantly. He missed Indira. As it turned out, Indira missed him equally as much. She came over to stay early next year.
Clara didn't like Indira. She missed her mum and wished that her parents were back together, and that her mum wasn't so far away. Indira was strange and unfamiliar.

Dominic thought a lot, after Indira went back home. Having a long distance relationship was hard, especially in times where instant communication across the world wasn't a thing - but for Dominic, his relationship was so, so important. He only put so much effort in because he really believed this was meant to be. He'd never felt a love like this - not even when he was younger, seeing Cliff. He believed in himself and Indira, and so did she.
Dominic went to India later in the year, this time, joined by Clara. Clara enjoyed it there far more than Dominic thought she would, much to his relief.
It's then that Indira brung Dominic the unfortunate news that her parents didn't accept the two of them as a couple, disapproving of their inter-racial, inter-national relationship. Dominic was deeply saddened by this news, but Indira reassured him that she didn't care. She was her own woman, and she knew what she wanted. In fact, she was looking into English citizenship. Indira had hinted several times, as subtle as possible, that marriage might be the best route, and before they left, Dominic proposed to her. Shortly after, Indira discovered that she was pregnant.

In July of next year, the two married, in a cultural mish-mash of a ceremony, desperately trying to cater to their different cultural and religious preferences. Their son, Kai London was born that September.

Dominic never really lost contact with the bandmates from when he was younger. He was still best friends with Joel, and saw Cliff sometimes, too. In fact, Kai was practically raised alongside Cliffs daughter, Iona Jacobs.

A few years later, Dominic's parents got into a severe, tragic car accident. Steve passed away at the scene, and Lydia died later in hospital. Dominic was inconsolable for months. Indira had the task of consoling both him, and 8-year old Clara.

Indira's dream of practicing law was turning out well, and making them a more than decent living. Dominic was a content stay-at-home dad. He still felt empty after the loss of his parents, but he was relieved that he had a stable, happy family, who he loved dearly, by his side.

2001 - 2019

In 2003, Kai started frequently bringing home Matthew Navarro, a kid from the cubs group he went to. Dominic often dropped Kai off at Matthews house, too, and it became routine to stick around for half an hour to have tea, biscuits, and a catch up, with Jodie Navarro (though this was not Jodies surname at the time), and Lisa Navarro, his parents.
Iona was a regular presence in the household, too. In fact, you could say she spent too much time there, nothing about her behaviour subtle, and her manners more than a little lacking.
However, Iona did seem to have her heart set on starting a band with Kai, who had been practicing on his little guitar for a few years now. This idea made Dominics musical heart swell with pride. Soon, Dominic found himself helping the kids in their musical aspirations - and when Matthew met Iona and started to take an interest, too, Dominic was eager to show him some drumming basics.
In 2006, 18-year-old Clara brought her boyfriend, Thomas Watts home, to introduce him to her family. Dominic was pleased, as Thomas seemed like a lovely young man.
This time period is also when the family adopted Peaches, a timid, yet endlessly sweet little puppy dog.
In 2008, Clara moved out with Thomas, to start a family of her own.
Kai was popular, too. He was constantly asking his father for advice on girls, and eventually, boys, as well.

In 2013, the family travelled to India for the first time since Indira emigrated. Indira's parents regretted losing contact, and they wanted to meet her family and make amends for lost time, too. This time around, they welcomed Dominic with open arms, despite there being a bit of a language barrier - and they loved Kai, too, who they were absolutely delighted to meet.
As the years pass, Indira expressed concerns to Dominic about their son - specifically, about the influence of his friend, Iona, on his life. Dominic didn't see the big deal, but Indira had heard things about Iona, as if what she'd seen with her own eyes wasn't enough. She had a point, and soon, Dominic started to notice subtle changes in his son, too. Kai had started seeing a woman called Abigail, who eventually fell completely off the rails as she was pulled into an inadvisable way of life. This broke Kai, and it was painful for Dominic and Indira to watch. Indira saw the way that Iona treated Kai and Matthew, and she thoroughly blamed her for what happened to Abigail, too. She banned Iona from the house, and ordered her to stop associating with her son. This, of course, wasn't going to happen.

The three of them travelled to India again, this time to attend the funeral of Indira's mother, who had sadly passed away.
Kai moved out 2016, the same year, to live with Matthew. Dominic hated how empty the house felt, but he loved having a bit more time just to him and Indira.
Life seemed okay for a while, before Dominic and Indira were told that Kai had been hospitalised after a bar fight. They were both shocked and scared - but unsurprised to find out that Iona was the driving force behind it. Indira even saw Iona at the hospital and screamed at her - but Iona didn't flinch.
Kai reassured both his parents that everything was okay. They didn't have to worry. Of course, they did still fret about their son, especially as his band grew in popularity and it seemed like every time they saw him he was sporting a new injury of some sort.
One night, Kai told his parents he was seeing someone new - someone genderless, in fact. Dominic and Indira were apprehensive, to put it mildly, but once they met Addison Ellis, their concerns flew out of the window.

2020 -

In 2020, Dominic becomes a grandparent! Clara and Thomas name their son Joe, and Dominic is absolutely smitten.
He walks Clara down the aisle next year, when she and Thomas tie the knot.

He and Indira are pleased when Kai tells them that he's left the band that was causing him so much stress, and he's no longer associating with Iona. He marries Addison the next year.

Many, many, many years later, Kai and Addison have a son named Seth - Dominics second grandson.
Dominic and Indira enjoy their retirement. They spend their joint pensions travelling the world.